Where Have You Been All My Life?
by Shelbo
Summary: The the East Coast Brotherhood sends its best paladins to the Mojave Desert to assist the Mojave BoS. The Lone Wanderer, Cassandra, meets the Courier, Sid. Can love flourish in the desert or will the hands of Caesar bring raining death upon both parties?
1. A Holotape Message

2282

Capital Wastes

A searing pain went through the leg of Cassandra, the Lone Wanderer, as the deathclaw sunk its jowls into the closest limb it could find. As an instinct, Cassie slammed the butt of her assault rifle into the creature's skull, causing a pool of oozing crimson blood to drip onto the ancient sidewalk of Old Olney. By her side, Fawkes the supermutant and Dogmeat attacked the beast. Fawkes was able to terminate the deathclaw with a round of fire from his Gatling Laser. "Thanks," murmured Cassie as she injected a stimpak into the torn and bloody wound.

"I think," grunted Fawkes, "that we must find something better to do than wander around the Capital Wastes looking for trouble."

"Mmmm, I am not too keen on going to the Pitt again." The Savior of the Wastes recalled the first and last time she visited the dangerous hell hole.

"Maybe we should catch up with the Brotherhood."

Cassie was an honorary paladin for the Brotherhood of Steel, an organization devoted to its pre-war technology and protecting the suffering people in the Wastes. She was especially close to Sentinel Sara Lyons, the daughter of the Elder of the D.C. chapter. Together, they had gone into the Jefferson Memorial and risked their lives to start Project Purity. They were inseparable friends; not bad considering their first encounter in the downtown D.C. ruins. She had even given Cassie her beloved Fat Man.

In no time at all, the trio travelled to the Citadel and were met by a hundred paladins by the entrance.

"At last," Paladin Tristan said to Cass, "We received a message from the Mojave chapter of the Brotherhood."

"So this is what the big hoo hah is about," replied Fawkes.

"Shut the hell up, mutie!" shouted a nearby initiate. "See, this is why we have to kill all supermutants. Who can trust one?"

Gunny walked over and smacked the jeering boy across the ear. "**You** shut the hell up, Rooney. Fawkes here is a regular Paladin as well as Cassandra."

"Yes," said Tristan finally to Fawkes. "This message was received last week, but the static was so atrocious that it was only until now that we could make out anything."

"Hey, hero, my father wants to talk to you," Sara strolled through the line of BoS soldiers. "Come with me."

* * *

><p>They (meaning Rothchild and Elder Lyons) were sitting on Rothchild's bed. As the Lone Wanderer walked in Rothchild tried to smile, but there was a look of agony. Elder Lyons only nodded.<p>

"As you are probably already aware," said the scribe, "we have finally deciphered the cryptic, barely coherent message sent by the Mojave Brotherhood of Steel. The chapter possessed a base at Helios One for countless years. Not long ago, a faction known as the New California Republic, or NCR, overran the defenses of our Brothers and took possession of the stronghold. There was a complete massacre. According to this message," he gestured to a holotape held in the hands of Scribe Peabody, "two-thirds of the BoS in the Mojave were killed. They have since been hiding in a hidden bunker. This message was sent shortly after moving to Hidden Valley. A strange courier was able to settle the feud between the NCR and the BoS, and the bunker is no longer in lockdown. They have asked every faction of our Brotherhood to send recruits over to the Mojave Desert to help get the Mojave Brotherhood on their feet again."

"A courier?" asked Cassie, cocking a black eyebrow.

"Yeah," said Sara Lyons. "The holotape goes on about 'em. Said he was some sort of hero to the Wastes. Remind you of someone?"

Cassie smirked and rolled her eyes. Rothchild continued, "We have tried to contact the West Coast Brotherhood, asking if they too have received this message. No replies yet."

Elder Lyons stood up and dusted himself, "You see, Cassandra, we think that it would be a good plan to send you, Star Paladin Cross, Sara, and Durga in the Vertibird out to the Mojave. We will supply you with everything."

"But what about us?" whined Fawkes. Dogmeat, seeming to understand the situation, burrowed his scrawny head into his black paws.

"Fawkes, you are a beloved affiliate of the Brotherhood," said Sara putting an arm around the mutated warrior. "This is why we have a special plan for you and Dogmeat. Instead of going to Hidden Valley, we need you in the downtown ruins cleaning up a glowing one infestation in one of the tunnels."

Fawkes scratched his head sadly and grunted, "Well, I guess it's still better than hunting deathclaws."


	2. Let's Go Sunning

The Brotherhood of Steel vertibird lifted off the ground with twenty paladins inside. All were draped in armor. Cassandra was wearing her T-51b armor, and Sarah wore her T-45d armor. Down below, the Lone Wanderer watched as Megaton came into sight and realized that she was probably never coming back. It was the first place she went when she exited the Vault. She had a house there even. Cassandra had cried only two times in her life: when her father died and when her best friend Amata banished her from Vault 101 after destroying Mack. She felt weak, and tried to make sure Sarah did not see her. She would never hear the end of it.

"Hey, hero," said Sarah, "It's getting kinda boring up in this piece of crap with wings. Why don't you take your doogad there and connect it to GNR?" Lyons pointed to the Pip-Boy 3000 on Cassie's wrist. Cassie nodded and tuned the radio in.

"Helloooooo, childrennnn!" came the low voice of the revered disc jockey for Galaxy News Radio. "This is Three Dog here, and, boy, do I got news. Well, all the meek people of post-Apocalyptia better stay indoors, cuz we have news from a Brotherhood of Steel knight that that crazy bitch from Vault 101 has left the Wastes in a vertibird! Now for some more tunes…."

"Civilization" by the Andrew Sisters blared through on the Pip-Boy. "Way to go, Three Dog," muttered Knight Captain Durga. "Just let the baddies know that the Savior is gone."

"I'm not a damn savior," said Cassie. There was a silence.

"Oh, bongo, bongo, bongo

I don't want to leave the Congo!"

Star Paladin Cross looked over at Durga and said, "Quiet you two. I happen to enjoy this composition." She sang softly along with the Andrew Sisters with her dark eyes closed."

"So," Durga whispered to Sarah. "Any chance we can head over to the New Vegas strip?"

As the vertibird reached the Dunwich building, Cassie's favorite song came on.

"Let's go sunning  
>It's so good for you<br>Let's go sunning  
>Beneath the sky of blue<br>Greet the sun every morn  
>Feel as free and happy as the day you were born!"<p>

Sarah, having remembered the time Cassie took down a super mutant behemoth while singing the song, grinned.

The sun was sinking into the sky as they reached the western border of the Wastelands of Washington, D.C. The golden sphere's amber hue shone through the soft pastel blue of the sky. Below they saw the aftermath of the Broken Steel mission: a dead Liberty Prime. Cross narrowed her cyborg eyebrows, "I certainly miss that robot." The Wastes was without a doubt the worse place to be. You walk out there into the open and choke on the radiation, get killed by mole rats, have feral ghouls maul you, or become enslaved. Anyone who said anything positive about the land was a moron.

The life expectancy was low. Too low. In the vault, Cassie remembered several elderly people, but outside, the old were killed. No one could be trusted. In the vault, you learned to read and write. Not many people in the Wasteland did, but where they lacked in "book-smarts" their "street-smarts" made up. Or should I say "Waste-smarts"? You had to learn to kill or be killed. It was a jungle out there.

But as Cassie looked down from the low-flying vehicle, all she could think of was how beautiful the Wastes could sometimes be.

"Pretty flowers need the sun  
>This applies to everyone<br>Life's worth living  
>When nature's giving<br>Happiness to everyone  
>So let's go sunning!"<p> 


	3. Ain't That a Kick in the Head?

"Wake up, Cassandra!"

Cassie was nudged in the back violently by (whom else?) Sarah Lyons. Cassie opened her heavy eyelids and ran her petite hand through her dirty blonde Mohawk. "Are we there yet?" she asked impatiently as a child would.

"Look down below, dumbass," remarked Durga, who never seemed to give a rat's ass about Cassandra, savior or not. Below the vertibird were the swirling sands of the Mojave. The Lyons' Pride looked down in awe as the vehicle landed on a landing pad in the middle of Nellis Airforce Base, where the holotape had said to land. The sky was black as satin, meaning it was around midnight when the vertibird began to descend.

"WOW!" shouted a small child, about ten years of age. He had red hair and freckles on his long nose. "That thing is bigger than our bomber!" Cassie had no clue what a bomber was (being a Vault dweller), but smiled anyway as she clambered out of the vertibird. Several people clad in bomber jackets crowded around the Pride as they exited. In the center was a good looking guy not in a bomber jacket, but in power armor. T-51b. He had long shaggy jet black hair, piercing blue eyes, and a broad chin.

"Hey, you guys are the Brotherhood from out east right?" he asked in a deep voice that reminded Cassie of the male singers who sang the songs on GNR. He was very cool looking, like he had been a member of the Tunnel Snakes from Vault 101. He had Elvis Presley sideburns that he kept nice groomed. "I'm Sid. Sid Boston. I'm a courier but I also do odd jobs for the NCR and the BoS. They aren't fighting out near Vegas anymore, so no worries."

He had a cocky vibe about him, which seemed to make Cassie's heart flutter but annoy the hell out of Sarah. She rolled her eyes and said, "So you're this courier that everyone seems to love? Oh yeah, the run rises and sets in your punk ass doesn't it?"

Cool as a cucumber, Sid shrugged his broad shoulder with a smile. he had the nicest teeth Cassandra had ever seen. "Hey now," we got the reply your scribe sent. You lot seem to have a similar martyr. What's her name? Miranda or something like that?"

"Cassandra, actually," the Lone Wanderer strode up to meet the Courier with a snarl. "Maybe you and I should have a test to see who the better paladin is?"

The crowd was silent. The ones in the bomber jackets (which the Pride later discovered where called the Boomers) all shouted, "SID! SID! SID! SID!" The BoS from the Capital all cheered for the punky girl who once sacrificed herself for the sake of Project Purity (even Durga!)

Sid unsheathed his bumper sword and twirled it about. Cassie had no melee weapons on her, so Cross threw her a super sledge. Sid made the first move; he was very lazy with the action, so the Wanderer was able to block the sword and push it towards Sid. Sid lost his balance and fell to the sandy ground. Cassie pulled out her laser pistol and aimed for his foot, so that she would not kill him when someone shouted, "ENOUGH!"

Some woman dressed in NCR armor hustled over to the two combatants. She looked at Cassie sternly and barked, "I don't know you, but if you were in the NCR, you would be in huge trouble. As for you," she turned to the cocky Sid. "Get the hell off the ground and stop behaving like a butthurt baby. Sad to think the very guy who slew Legate Lanius is now fighting some youngster from a Vault. And she's beating you too."

Sid got up and dusted himself off, and proceeded to pull his opponent from the ground. "Good fight," he grunted. "I'll beat you next time though."

Cassie laughed, "Heh, not on your life, mister. Pay attention when you're swinging that piece of shit."

"Hey, you two lovebirds!" shouted Knight Captain Dusk. "We are heading on over to Hidden Valley."


	4. The Waters of Life

**Authors Note: I'm completely aware of the fact that the water in the Mojave is a good deal less radiated than the waters of the Capital. However, I figured it would be cute to have Sid and Cassandra bond due to their passion for a better Wasteland.**

As a group of NCR recruits led the Pride towards Hidden Valley, Sid began to become acquainted with Cassie, who shared the same name as the NCR commander who broke up the fight between our heroes. "Yeah," the courier said with a smirk. "Don't mind the Cassandra-Who-Isn't-You. She is rough around the edges, but she has a damned heart of gold. Isn't that right?" He asked the group.

"Go screw yourself," muttered a nearby NCR ranger. He wore a type of armor that was peculiar to Cassie. It consisted of a radiation mask and a trench coat.

"Woah," she squeaked. "These NCR cats have the coolest armor I've seen. Well besides maybe Tesla armor or," she knocked on the breast plate of her own power armor, "T-51b."

"Ya think so?" Sid scratched the back of his head. "Here you go then." He pulled out the exact type of armor the ranger had on from his rucksack. "I pinched this off a dead guy hope you don't mind."

"Nah," Cassie said. "I tend to wear Tesla armor I find on dead Enclave soldiers."

"Enclave? Tesla?" Sid asked. Cassandra wanted to laugh in his beauteous face. Back in the D.C Wastelands, if you didn't know who the Enclave was, people thought you were either retarded or grew up in Vault 101. Then, she had heard once before that the Enclave was not as big of a faction out in the Southwest as it was in the Northeast.

"The Enclave is a group of bigots who seem to believe that they are the god-sent rulers of the United States," said Sarah Lyons, who was strapping up her power armor. "They used to give us Hell back in D.C., but then this woman came along." She put her hand of Cassie's broad shoulders. "Cassandra saved the Wastes and was able to bring fresh water to the people. All people."

"Huh," remarked Commander Moore. "You Brotherhood people are a bunch of socialists."

"You know," Sid said rubbing his chin. "I think that we should do something like that for some of the impure parts of the desert."

"What?" cried Commander Moore. "That would be impossible. Think of all the equipment we'd have to scavenge."

"That's exactly what everyone told my dad when he decided to start Project Purity years before I was born," Cassandra said. "Even his assistant, Dr. Madison Li, told him it was crazy. A pipedream, if you pardon the pun. However, even though it failed once before we moved to the Vault, we tried again. Then, the Enclave invaded and killed my father, the spearhead of the project. Then, Sarah and I stormed in and killed the Enclave, went into irradiated control room and voila! The water has replenished everyone in D.C."SS

"Still, you're what, seventeen?" asked Commander Moore in a snide manner.

"No, twenty-four. I just look young."

"See how long it would take to do this?"

"I like to keep an open mind, Commander," approached Sid. "In New Vegas, hey, you never know."

Cassie was his. Hook, line, and sinker.


	5. Render Unto Caesar

**Author's Note: We'll leave Sid and Cassie for a while to focus on the baddies of this story! :D**

**Flagstaff, Arizona**

Far away from Hidden Valley was the depleted Caesar's Legion, stationed in the snowy mountains of Arizona. In the largest hut, in the center of Flagstaff, Caesar sat upon his throne. He looked down at a guest who was covered in some sort of power armor he had never seen before.

"Tell me," the Conqueror of Eighty-eight Tribes barked, "who sent you."

"No one sent me," said the guest who then proceeded to remove his air filtration mask and expose an ugly face. "I'm an Enclave soldier from California. I've been drifting around Nevada, Utah, and Arizona for a few weeks now, and I've heard reports about your legion being badly defeated by a group called the NCR."

"Yes, our mortal enemy." Caesars eyes burnt with hate.

"The Enclave also bares a grudge. One story I heard from a sycophant in Novac, Nevada claims that among the allies of the accursed NCR was the Brotherhood of Steel."

"Yeah, so?"

The soldier cleared his throat. "As much as your Legion hates the New California Republic, your hate is simply a mild annoyance compared to the Enclave's rancor for those paladins in power armor. I am a General of a small group of one hundred, not much compared what the Capital used to have before the Brotherhood over there destroyed each and every Enclave member."

"Hm, if you are trying to make a point, make it, or I shall crucify you," replied Caesar. "General….."

"Hatton, your Imperialness," the soldier remarked. "My point is that it is no secret that you are planning to strike back at a certain courier named Sid Boston. I believe he is the one who slew your best soldier."

"Damned boy killed Legate Lanius." Of course, Caesar remembered Sid. How could he forget? When Caesar had heard about Sid acquiring Mr. House's platinum chip, he had gone out of his way to send Vulpes Inculta to persuade him into paying a visit to Fortification Hill. Caesar remembered the first time he saw the ragtag young man walk into camp that day: unshaven, long shaggy hair, and Mark of Caesar hanging around his sinewy neck. He was charming, but completely headstrong. Boston stormed away from Caesar upon hearing of the dastardly deeds planned for him. He joined the NCR not long after.

The next time Caesar saw him, Sid was extremely well dressed in a checkered suit, his hair styled into a neat pompadour, his facial hair cut into a goatee, but his sideburns still unkempt. He looked like a million bucks; he had hung out with the Kings obviously. He was New Vegas and the NCR's golden boy. Caesar knew he should have killed him when he was weak.

General Hatton grinned an evil grin and said, "Yes, I believe my group can help your Legion in the extermination of our enemies."

Caesar scratched his broad chin. "So, the Legion can kill the NCR and you guys will take out the Brotherhood?"

"Precisely."

"I desire to place a certain observation into this conversation," Vulpes, who had been standing next to the throne, said in his usual diction. "There is about a thousand total in the entire Legion, in all the territories. There are a hundred of the Enclave remnants. Now compare that to the thousands of NCR soldiers in Nevada alone and the hundred BoS warriors."

"Yes," said Caesar to Hatton. "How the hell would we emerge the victor if we were to attack now?"

"We don't attack now." Hatton giggled like a mad man.

"You knave! I will crucify you if you do not share your whole idea!"

"The Capital Enclave may be dead, but there is a large Enclave population hiding in Mexico."

Vulpes's eyebrows rose. He said snidely, "If the Enclave is the 'American government', why are they residing south of the border then?"

Hatton mused, "When the NCR removed the Enclave from Navarro, a couple hundred troopers moved down there and became the Mexican government."

Caesar rolled his eyes. "THIS IS RIDICULOUS!" he barked. "Guards, take this man to be crucified."

A Praetorian guard latched onto Hatton's arm and began to drag the deranged man from the hut and to a cross when another Enclave soldier blocked the doorway. "Hold it right there, buddy," said the trooper. "Let Initiate Hatton go. I'm the REAL general of the Texas Enclave. My name is Anderson, General Phillip Anderson. This piece of shit in Tesla armor," he motioned a reinforced hand towards Hatton, "is a deranged man who needs a shot to the brain to put him out of his misery."

Caesar's blonde brow furrowed and he raved, "What in God's name is going on? Why did you not come in first? Why did you send Dipshit here?"

Phillip Anderson removed his helmet, showing a beautiful young face with a buzz cut. He said at last, "I honestly didn't think _General_ Hatton here would say this bull about the Mexican Enclave. I assumed he would tell you the truth about us." He said "General" mockingly.

"_You_ need to tell me that truth or else I'll crucify you like the sinning dog you are!" growled Caesar.

"We are the Texas Enclave," Phillip spat out. "We have the biggest number of Enclave troops in the United States. When we heard about the Brotherhood of Steel and the NCR taking control of the Mojave, a third of us decided to take a trip here and see what was what now that we know where the Brotherhood has been hiding."

"Where are you stationed…_General_?" Once again, the word "General" was said nastily.

"Grand Canyon. We are **VERY** close to you here."

"Hmph," Caesar said, actually pleased this time, "I think I will make a trip to your camp sometime. With the Enclave's assistance, I believe it is possible to clear the names "NCR", "Brotherhood", and "courier" out of the Mojave's mouth, _forever_."


	6. Heartache by the Numbers

After a long conversation in the halls of the bunker, Cassandra was tired and went outside to be blasted around by the sandstorms. For hours and hours, the NCR troopers and the Brotherhood went back and forth about policies regarding patrolling I-15 and returning salvaged power armor to the BoS. It was obvious to Cassie and the rest of the Capital Wastelanders that the NCR and Mojave BoS were still hostile towards each other even though there was a truce. At one point, Commander Moore and Elder McNamara almost had a shouting match.

"I believe it might be beneficial for the NCR to create a fort at the Rep-Conn Test Site," Moore announced.

"What about us? You have so many bases, and we just have this bunker," McNamara replied.

"WE are the controllers of New Vegas!" barked Moore.

Sarah Lyons seemed to get along with McNamara, and Cassie got an official medal from the Mojave chapter for her efforts. However, the Lone Wanderer couldn't help but think that coming out to the Mojave was a waste. No pun intended. She messed about with her Pip-Boy, searching for some radio station that played her favorite type of music: pre-war swing and big band. Instead, she picked up Mojave Radio which was playing "Heartache by the Numbers" by Guy Mitchells.

"Great song," a husky voice said. Cassie turned around to see a cocky Sid standing with his muscular back against the bunker wall stroking his black goatee. "I prefer Radio New Vegas however." He was no longer wearing power armor, but a checkered suit.

"Radio….New Vegas?" Cassie repeated.

Sid pulled up the sleeve of his suit to expose a Pip-Boy just like Cassie's. "Wait," she mumbled. "Were you a vault dweller, too?"

He smirked and said, "Nah, I just picked it up on my travels. Very handy. I'm from New Reno, though. I couldn't ever be forced to stay in one of those dirty hellholes. How did you ever manage?"

"It kinda helps if you grow thinking that the Vault is the whole world."

Sid laughed and lit a cigarette. "Huh. Out of all the D.C. bunch, I think I like you the most, Mohawk-Chick."

"I dig you too," was Cassandra's response. "Hey weren't you going to show me that station?"

Sid paused to let smoke out of his mouth. "Yeah, yeah." He tuned his Pip-Boy in.

"That was Heartache by the Numbers by Guy Mitchells. You are listening to Radio New Vegas, sponsored by the Lucky 38, owned by Sid Boston."

"You own a casino?" Cassie asked.

"Two." Sid replied.

" Wow. You must be some big shot."

She was expecting him to say something boastful, but instead, he looked down and said, "No, I'm just an average guy who worked for the Mojave Express. One day, I was sent to deliver this platinum chip to Mr. House, and as I was passing through Goodsprings, some cat from the Strip named Benny shot me. Right in the noggin. I was patched up and went out looking for him. When I found him, I shot him with a rifle in his own head. I picked his pocket, and got the chip, a casino…and this suit."

Cassie shook her head. "It's true, then: some are born great and others…"

"…others have it thrust upon them, yeah."

The Courier looked puzzled for a moment, then he asked, "Is there any chance we could visit the Strip. You and I?"

"What? Like a date?"

"NO!" He blushed.

"I was teasing….Elvis!" she tugged his sideburns.

"Yeah, yeah, I knew that, Mohawk-Chick!"


	7. Penthouse

**Author's Note: This was the chapter I was very excited to write. I also would appreciate it if my readers would write reviews.**

"Try this!" Sid beamed at his new friend as they lounged in the penthouse of the Lucky 38. In his stubby hands, he held a bottle of some sort of soda with a pre-war label on. It read "Sunset Sarsaparilla". "I'd try to drink as many as possible, it is really arid out here. I mean, you can dehydrate very easily. I drink any thing I find, but this shit totally kicks the pants off of Nuka Cola."

Cassie, intrigued, took a sip and had the sickeningly sweet liquid pour fluidly down her throat. "Oh my God, this is so good!" She was starting to realize that with Sid, the Mojave seemed so much better than the Capital. Already, they had strolled down the Strip and Freeside, playing a few games of poker, which even though Cassie sucked at, Sid proved to be excellent. Everyone loved Sid. As they walked through Freeside, the duo was swamped by greaser-like thugs who looked a lot like Sid. They asked him about everything from the casinos he ran to where the best place to take a piss in the desert was.

"They don't have that in Maryland, eh?" the Courier teased. She had already finished the entire bottle.

Rubbing a dainty hand across her full mouth, she said, "I'm sorry about earlier, when I almost shot your foot off."

"Don't sweat. See, I have a weird mutation in my DNA, so that I regenerate limbs easily when radiated."

"You're…a mutant?"

"Well kinda. I once allowed myself to be extremely irradiated a long ass time ago, when I was a kid who didn't know anything about the perils of the Wastes. I got extremely sick and started glowing. Ma and Pa took me to the local doctor in New Reno. They were concerned about me being ghoulified." He said "ghoulified" in a rough, raspy ghoul voice that sounded very accurate.

"Weird. The first city I found after leaving the vault had this store ran by this insane redhead lady. She was writing this book about surviving the post-Apocalyptic Wastelands. Part of it, was how to treat radiation, so she paid me to go out and take a bath in a radiation puddle by a bomb. I came back, thinking she would fuck up my body, but the dunce got the job done." They both laughed.

"Once again," said Sid taking a sip of his Atomic Cocktail, "favorite D.C. cat."

"Do you mind if I shoot your arms off?" she asked. She immediately regretted it._ God_, she thought. _Now he thinks I am some psycho bitch_.

"SURE! I let my buddy Boone do it all the time when he is having his time of month!" Sid took more sips of his drink to become very drunk and radiated.

Cassie pulled out her Alien Atomizer, causing Sid to gawk. "Woah, man. I don't think you should use that thing. Jesus. I bet it would completely kill me." Pouting Cassie traded the weapon for a 10 mm submachine gun. With her brilliant aim, she hit her love interest directly in the shoulder. The well-muscled arm tore off from Sid's body and flew a good five feet before dropping. Sid clenched his fists and gritted his teeth at the unbearable pain, but in less than a minute, a brand new arm spawned where the old one once resided.

"Nice little perk there."

"Oh indeed," he nodded vigorously.

Cassie took off her NCR Ranger armor and put on her sleepwear. Sid couldn't help but gawk. She was very thin, like jet addict chic models. But she still had a nice bust in Sid's opinion.

"Hey," he said. "Are you gonna sleep in the bunker tonight?"

"Nah," she replied.

"Good, cuz, I really want you to sleep with me…NOT HAVE SEX THOUGH!" He started to go on about just sleeping and not engaging in anything she didn't want, getting tongue-tied. _Try not to blow it, man_, he thought to himself.

"Fine with me." She pulled back the cover to the king-sized bed and lay down with the Courier. The Courier reached over to the radio on his nightstand, tuning it in to Radio New Vegas.

"Ah," Sid moaned. "My favorite song of all time."

"Like a shooting star  
>You appeared before me<br>Where have you been all my life?

All at once I've found  
>Someone to adore me<br>Where have you been all my life?"

The Lone Wanderer blinked. "I think I rather like it, too."

Sid looked over at her and mouthed the words along with the song:

"Until the moment we met I had no one to cling to  
>To be just everything to, to be my own true love!"<p>

Touched, she leaned over and planted a quick warm kiss on the top of the Courier's warm brow.

They proceeded to cuddle and and finally, they fell asleep. In her sleep, the Lone Wanderer laid her head on the Courier's broad chest as he held her head with his left hand.

"If this is a dream  
>Let me keep on dreaming<br>Where have you been all my life?"


	8. Sarsparilla, Nipton, and Hellfire

Sid woke up alone the next morning. Cassie was nowhere in sight, and all evidence of her being there was missing. No power armor lying around or any weapons. All that remained was a bottle of Sunset Sarsaparilla on the nightstand with a note attached. Sid got out of bed, still wearing his checkered suit from last night, and picked up the bottle, reading the note.

"_Sid-_

_I left to help Lyons patrol the area of Nipton. From what I understand, the place had major Legion control, and we are going to see if there are any more people there who were not slaughtered. Here's some Sunset Sarsaparilla by the way. I stole it from your fridge last night. I only drank a quarter of it._

_-Cassie_."

Sid shook his head, folded the note, and put it in one of his pockets.

* * *

><p>Cassie had on her Winterized T-51b power armor that she acquired when helping the Outcasts by using an Operation: Anchorage simulator. This was, besides the NCR ranger armor and the Tesla armor she had back in Megaton, her favorite apparel. In her dainty hands was a Tesla Cannon, the most powerful weapon she had brought to New Vegas. Elder McNamara had told the two East Coast Brotherhood members to look into Nipton during a meeting that morning, and happy to finally have a mission, they obliged. It was quite a walk from Hidden Valley to Nipton but it was nothing for such strong people as Cassie and Sarah.<p>

"Oh look at this dump," Sarah remarked. "It has been a year since the Second Battle of Hoover Dam, and yet nobody has cleaned this place up!"

Skeletons were hung from crosses in a way that reminded Cassie of the death of Jesus in the Bible her parents loved so much. "This is pure evil," she muttered darkly. Sarah had to nod.

"So," Sarah said with her hands on her hips. "I didn't see you in the barracks last night. Where the hell did you go?"

"I was with….Sid…."

"I honestly think he's a jerk, some trigger-happy kid who somehow became some glorified hero."

"Kind of like me."

"No," Sarah said sternly. "Nothing at all like you. You brought water to your people and almost singlehandedly took down the oppressors."

"He took care of Caesar's Legion."

"Yeah, but Caesar isn't dead yet. He's probably alive somewhere plotting his return."

Sarah couldn't have been more right.

* * *

><p>Caesar and Vulpes Inculta were on a row boat, with a guard paddling it down the Colorado River. Today, they would finally see what kind of army General Phillip was running in Arizona. They docked on a bank somewhere at the place pre-war tourists called "Bright Angel". On the river's shore, they were met by the Enclave general and another trooper wearing Hellfire armor. "Ahhh," Phillip said, eyes twinkling, "Mr. Caesar. I see you took us up on our offer. Pardon me, your Imperialness, but this here is the best Enclave fighter in the United States: Henry Sanctum. Lieutenant Sanctum. He is the only survivor of the D.C. Chapter."<p>

Caesar bowed his head and smirked. "Your Imperialness," said the Hellfire trooper. "I look forward to supporting your legion to the absolute best of my, er, abilities."

"Show me your regiments, General." Caesar was impatient.

"Follow me," said Anderson, who began to climb the rocks of the Canyon to get to a ledge with a cavern.

The party of five walked through the small cavity in the wall of the Canyon to emerge on another side. Looking down, they saw a massive military base twice the size of the Fort in its glory days. There were men training in the center and even three vertibirds parked towards the East. Caesar bit his lip and asked, "How many men do you have, General Anderson?"

"Since our last visit, twelve score have arrived from Texas. So we now consist of ten thousand."

"We have a deal," Caesar said breathlessly.

**Author's Note: Cliffhang3r! xD Here's one more chapter before I go to Mexico for a week. Please read and review. I need more feedback.**


	9. Cazador Hunting

**Later that day.**

"Ah, I figured I'd find you here."

"The hell are you doing here, Sid?" Cassie asked as she turned around; for the past hour she had been scavenging parts of power armor outside Nipton. Boring work up until the Courier came. He was wearing his T-51b armor, and his goatee was shaved off. Behind him was some stranger wearing a beret and shades, carrying a rifle. The stranger didn't smile.

"Craig here and I decided to join up with you and the sentinel. We have an idea."

"And what would that be?" Sarah looked slightly annoyed by the loose cannon paladin. Not even Cassie would shirk from BoS duties.

"Craig- I mean Mr. Boone saw some cazadors towards Novac, so I started thinking to myself, 'Huh, none of the guys back East have ever dealt with these shit heads'. Today is the day you guys learn how to kill these suckers. They are some of the nastiest things you will see out here, besides Deathclaws."

"I can handle Deathclaws, Mr. Boston," Cassie smirked picking up her Tesla Cannon to emphasize her capabilities.

"Actually, I hear that the Mojave Deathclaws make the ones back at home seem like mole rats."

"Yeah," Boone said expressionlessly. "You come up on a nest of them towards Goodsprings and game over. Just sayin'. Lost a man there back when I was in the service. I was lucky to make it out with both legs broken."

"So, are you guys in for cazador hunting?" asked Sid.

"Sure," Cassandra agreed.

* * *

><p>"There it is: ugliest things known to man," Sid whispered.<p>

The foursome was hiding behind a rock in the Grand Canyon, looking down at the flock of cazadors below them. Neither Cassie nor Sarah Lyons had ever seen anything like cazadors. To Cassandra, they kind of looked like bloatflies, but uglier and obviously harder to kill, which was why they were having a lesson.

"The key thing to remember is that they attack in packs. Take out the wings first: it will make them slow. Also, these fags are poisonous. If it bites, stimpak it up or sayonara. Wanna add anything, Boone?"

"If you have a sniper rifle, use it. It makes life a bunch of rainbows and cupcakes. Sentinel, stick with me as I go to the opposite side of this canyon. There are more cazadors there."

Like that, both the NCR sniper and the BoS sentinel vanished into the red dust. Cassie rummaged in her pack of weapons and ammo and pulled out a sniper rifle like Boone had suggested. "Out of ammo," she muttered.

"Here, I got some." Sid reloaded the firearm for her and polished the dirty barrel. "Wash this thing! You guys have clean water out there don't you?"

The Lone Wanderer shrugged. "Yeah, but we have to reserve that water for drinking. We don't have enough for washing our weapons quite yet. Besides, I never have time to. Always saving these people or running some errand for the Brotherhood. Crazy all the time. I'm lucky if I can chill in my house in Megaton."

"I thought you lived in Vault 101."

"I used to, but I had to leave. I can never go back. It wasn't much; the Overseer was a jackass, the people there were hypocrites. It was home though. I miss some of the folks there: Officer Gomez, Freddie Gomez…..Amata." A tear grew in Cassie's brown eye.

"It's okay. I wish I could go back to my parents. They kicked me out when they found me getting intimate with some girl. Got her pregnant and I gave her all the caps I had so she could support the kid. I was actually excited over becoming a dad, then she got addicted to Med X, ran off to Cali with some ghoul dude, and last I heard, Ghoulboy influenced her to abort it….my son. After Mom and Dad booted me, I got a job with Mojave Express." Sid looked down at his feet.

"Huh, we both had crappy lives, eh?"

"Yeah. Look, there's a cazador." A winged beast noticed a strand of blonde from Cassie's head and flew up to investigate. Before it could see either of them, Sid put his arm in front of Cassie and pulled out his silenced firearm. The bullet pierced the cazador's wing, spilling blood all over the ground. The hellion hopped, unable to fly but still able to make plenty of noise. Cassie blew the creature's head off with a BANG! The horde of cazadors took wing and began flying towards where they saw their ally go down.

Five cazadors flew down and began to attack when Boone finally reached the other side and easily picked them off with his sniper rifle. Sarah Lyons was nowhere in sight.

"You guys, Lyons found something over towards the South Rim that you aren't going to like."

* * *

><p><strong>Bright Angel Base<strong>

General Phillips, SIR!" An Enclave trooper hollered while standing at attention.

"Yes, soldier?"

"Legion scouts have spotted a Brotherhood paladin armed to the teeth and wearing some strange power armor. They would have attacked had she not been accompanied by the NCR cat who helped Sid Boston take out Lanius. He's a master at sniping I hear." The man was sweating.

"I hear that you better send a party of Enclave soldiers after her or you'll be doing kitchen duty until next month, sergeant."

"SIR YES SIR!"


	10. The Yellow Mama

"Hold it right there!" a stern voice echoed out as the trio had finally reached an unconscious Sarah Lyons. It appeared as though she had been taken by surprise and knocked senseless with some energy weapon, after all: Sarah was invincible. An Enclave soldier and a troop of Legion scouts stepped out from behind a large boulder. In the Enclave trooper's hand was a large, strange rifle that omitted a yellow glow. "Your friend the Sentinel was taken down easily with two rounds of this. It is the Enclave's latest technological masterpiece: the Yellow Mama. If you don't want to end up like the paladin on the floor here, you'd best come quietly."

Boone had had enough of the attacker's nasally voice and pulled out his trusty sniper rifle. As powerful as the Yellow Mama was, the gun was much heavier than Boone's, so the Enclave trooper was unable to match the speed of his opponent. Swift silver bullets sped and lodged into the head of the trooper. Just like in a terrible B-list horror film from the 2010's, the man's head exploded, pouring brains and bits of skull onto the uniforms of his Legion companions.

"Your friend musta got lucky in taking out Sarah here," Sid smirked cockily as he picked up the Yellow Mama. He felt the power of the gun in his hands. It was way too powerful, better than his best grenade rifle, Thump-Thump. He aimed it at the Legion scouts who immediately ran back the way they came.

Once they were out of earshot, Sid said, "Okay, Boone, take Sarah to Freeside, and see if the Followers of the Apocalypse can fix her up. Me and Cassie are going to follow those shitheads to see where their base is."

Boone, silent as ever, grunted and picked up Sarah, threw her over his broad shoulders, and started off towards the Strip. Sid put his heavy new weapon in his satchel and started to follow the Legion scouts. "Come on, our biggest enemies have teamed together. This is the worst thing possible. We have to see how many there are, than report back to Hidden Valley with the info. Got me?"

"Gotcha."

* * *

><p><strong>Several hours later at the Hidden Valley Bunker<strong>

"Ah," Elder McNamara smiled as he saw his favorite paladin and the most popular person in the East Brotherhood chapter. "I was wondering where you went. Where is the Sentinel? Or even that brutish NCR 1st Recon sniper that follows you like a puppy, Paladin Boston?"

"We have come across a dilemma, Elder McNamara. It appears as though the Legion has teamed up with the Enclave and are stationed in the Grand Canyon. There are thousands of them. All armed. The Enclave has even built some new diabolical weapon." He pulled out the Yellow Mama.

The Elder was shocked. "Holy Steel! I'll be damned. It seems to use micro fusion cells as ammo and shoot bolts of electric currents, like a cattle prod rifle. Is seems similar to what the BoS out east call a Tesla Cannon. You own one, yes, Cassandra?" Cassie nodded. "I believe the name is actually a reference to a slang name for the electric chairs used during pre-war times."

The two paladins looked at him blankly.

"Oh, I forgot, you two know nothing about pre-war tech. The electric chair was used to terminate criminals who were given the death sentence."

"Actually," Cassie remarked, "I know what you are talking about. There is such a chair in the D.C. ruins. It doesn't work anymore of course."

"Anyway," the Elder continued. "We're lucky Sentinel Lyons wasn't turned to ash. Elder Lyons would kill me. Why don't you take this gun to the scribes and see what they can do for you."


	11. A Trip to the Mormon Fort

**Shortest chapter yet, I know. And I am a little blocked anyway if you can't tell. All I know is that this story will have exactly fifteen chapters.**

* * *

><p>A month flew by as the BoS started to prepare for a potential war against the Legion and Enclave remnants. After long arguments, Elder McNamara and Sid Boston were able to convince Commander Moore to join forces with the knights in shining power armor. She was hesitant and it took a week for her to give in. A document was sent to President Kimbell asking for permission to allow all NCR East of California to gather by the Dam. Kimbell accepted, and reinforcements rolled in by the numbers.<p>

As the paladins and NCR troopers were being whipped into shape, Cassie, Sid, and Boone decided to make a trip to Freeside to meet with a certain Arcade Gannon. As they stepped into Freeside, every man, woman and child bowed their heads in respect as Sid walked through. They knew not to fuck with him. The Mormon Fort's gate was opened, allowing easy access into their destination. Dozens of ill vagrants lie in tents, so close to death they felt the foreboding tendrils in their dry mouths. Arcade was in his normal spot.

"Gannon."

"Sidney Boston, what brings you here?"

"Your pals from the Enclave are planning to massacre the BoS and NCR, that's what. Joined with the damn Legion."

"Do pardon," Arcade barked, "but the Remnants that I am associated with want no part in the destruction of either the NCR or Brotherhood of Steel. They want to kill us. Not the other way around. I assure you that I have no part in this, nor does Daisy, Orion, C.J., or the others. If you came to accuse us of calling in Enclave reinforcements, I must say good day to you. Besides, the Remnants have utterly left behind the fascist beliefs of the Enclave, though we use only the name and power armor."

"Calm down," said Sid. "We know that the Remnants have nothing to do with this. I just wondered if you were aware of Enclave chapters elsewhere. We know they all left Cali and D.C. Cassie here took out the psychopaths out there."

Arcade looked at Cassie, noted her BoS armor, and said, "Oh, a paladin."

Cassie snarled. "An Enclave ass swipe."

"Play nice," Sid said.

Arcade cracked his large knuckles. "Yes, D.C. and Navarro troopers are morte I believe but if I remember correctly, the Enclave had a base stationed in Corpus Christi. Located in a place that was called Texas before the War. Supposedly, they are there to protect borders from immigrants who might take up all of the resources. Food is hard to come by in the Wastes afterall."

"Oh, so you think these hundreds of Enclave troopers might be the Texas Enclave?"

"If they have a star on their power armor, right on their breast plate, I am certain of it."


	12. Technical Foul

That night, Cassie, Arcade, Boone, and Sid spent an hour hacking into the Enclave database via the computers in the BoS Bunker. It took them a while to convince the scribes to allow them to use their technology, and the head scribe was very touchy, but in the end, Boone's hunting knife pressed firmly to the techie's neck was as convincing as anything.

"Have you found anything?" Sid said tapping his fingers against the desk.

Arcade grunted. "I'm in the base, but I can't find anything out about the Enclave chapters, because this site is so outdated that the first page states "Breaking News! Navarro Oil Rig Destroyed!"

"Click that link, the one that says Locations." Cassie knew a thing or two about technology thanks to her father. In fact, she had a skill of 75 at computers.

Arcade did as she said and a new page pulled up instantly. Several regiments in blue texts were listed alphabetically. He scrolled down until he found Texas Enclave's link and clicked. Another page pulled up with a picture of their emblem: the star that was on the breastplate of the power armor of the troopers Cassie, Sid, Boone, and Sarah had found.

The page read:

_America's REAL Enclave! Stationed in Corpus Christi, Texas, the Texas Enclave with over ten thousand members has one purpose: to protect the citizens of the United States of America and follow the grand tradition of pre-War lawman. Our main goal is to keep the borders safe from illegal immigrants. We are the largest regiment in the Enclave since the disposal of the D.C. officials. Our leader is General Phillip Anderson. Thank your for visiting our page and God Bless America._

The website ended there with a GIF of a waving American flag. Arcade bit his lower lip. He said, "I don't know if there is anything else to this site honestly. WAIT! An admin site."

"Here, I'm a decent hacker, I'll get the password." Cassie looked at the long list of green words, trying to decide which one would work.

Star didn't work.

Sunset didn't work.

There was one chance left and Cassie chose "Hellfire". The page was unlocked.

This one read:

_The Texas Enclave website was last updated: Sept. 5, 2282. _

_Welcome, soldier! What is the purpose of your visit?_

_-Weapons_

_-Orders_

_-Editing Site_

Arcade instantly clicked "Orders", and found yet another page.

_Part of the regiment is required to take the vertibirds to Mojave Wasteland in efforts to wipeout the Brotherhood stationed there. Intel has it tha_t _the chapter is weak in number and should be easy to wipeout. We will use our brand new weapon, weapon 138. See info in "Weapons" section of site._

Gannon backspaced and clicked "Weapons". A blueprint of the very rifle that Sid held in his hands was there to greet them. Arcade read, "Weapon 138-Yellow Mama is the latest in Enclave technology. It was originally brainstormed by Enclave scientists out East who fled during the Siege of Operation Purity. The rifle runs on microfusion cells and is highly dangerous. Only troopers who are certified in Energy weapons are allowed to handle the Yellow Mama."

"Well?" asked Sid. "They are definitely planning our demise. That's a no-brainer. But what do they want with the Legion?"

Cassie shrugged. She said, "I have no clue, but I think it'd be a good idea to print that schematic for the Yellow Mama out so that the scribes will be able to understand it better. I hear that they are producing ones for selected BoS and NCR members."


	13. The Night Before the Battle

Weapons were developed, armor fitted, and everyone in the Hidden Bunker and the Grand Canyon knew that at some point, some one HAD to strike first. But who would make the move? "If they attack us," Moore said, "you can be sure they are aiming for the Dam."

"How about HELIOS One?" asked a Brotherhood initiate.

"Unlikely."

McNamara raised his eyebrows, "Rudolphus may have a point. They may be convinced that we are focused more on the Dam, so it would be prudent for them to attack in a weak spot such as that. Plus, if they control the base, the control the Strip's power."

"Perhaps," said Lyons who had made a full recovery. "Perhaps we make our attack first."

"How would we do that Lyons?" asked Moore.

"Send in our best men on a BoS vertibird armed with big guns. That's the key: big guns. Any place we can find those kinds of power, Sidney?"

Sid cracked a grin. "Sure do! The Boomers would go out of their way to help the NCR. And by extension, the Brotherhood."

"We need someone to sneak into Flagstaff and murder Caesar however."

"Case closed, " Cassie said. "Cross and I will be in the plane while Sid assassinates Caesar."

"No," said Sid. "I'm not leaving your side."

Cassie said, "Look, I'm the best in the Brotherhood when it comes to big guns. I aced my G.O.A.T. after all."

Everyone gave her a peculiar stare.

"Uh, it's a Vault thing."

The council "oh"-ed in unison.

"Well," said Cassandra Moore. "That's it for the tonight's meeting. Everyone head to bed. Tomorrow we launch our attack. Be sure to have your "Yellow Mama" on the bed, Sid. That is what you will use to murder Caesar."

* * *

><p>Caesar awoke, kicking and screaming, from another night terror about being punched to death by the Courier. During his struggle, the conqueror had wet his bed. Disgusted, he pulled his sheets off and tossed them into the raging fire outside his tent. He sniffed his ill-smelling arm and wretched. Reaching into a box underneath his bed, he pulled out a Pip-Boy 4000 and checked the time. Midnight. He knew that he had to plan an attack against the NCR soon, or else they would crush him. He then remembered the thousands of Enclave troopers who were backing him up, and he floated back to sleep dreaming of the blood rushing from Sid's hands as he hung upside down from a solid gold crucifix.<p>

* * *

><p>Up in the penthouse of the Lucky 38, Sid and Cassie lie naked on the bed. They had been doing "energy weapon drills" for an hour and now they were completely pooped. Cassie rested her mohawked head unto Sid's bare chest and said, "After the war, I'm leaving the Capital and staying here with you."<p>

"But what about your father?"

"He's been dead for years, Sid. I love him and never will stop, but just because I abandon Washington doesn't mean he's not with me anymore. Fawkes, my sidekick, can take care of himself AND Dogmeat. As much as I love my people, I love you the most."

"Yet you've only known me for a month."

"My grandparents got married after a week of knowing each other and they stayed together for forty years until one of them died."

"I thought you didn't know your grandparents."

Cassie giggled. "I don't. That was what Dad told me."

They both guffawed for a moment, then in all serious, Cassie asked, "You promise you'll come find me as soon as you destroy Caesar and we will elope?"

"The second I kill him, we are off to Goodsprings to be wed in peace."


	14. The Battle of the Canyon

The desert storm in the canyon had begun. Dirt drifted through the breeze, scraping against the faces of wastelanders who were out scavenging on the fateful day that would go down in history. The Battle at the Canyon was about to begin. Five turret guns were loaded unto a Vertibird flown by a Boomer pilot named Samson. The sun had been in the sky for an hour by the time Cassandra the Lone Wanderer and Star Paladin Cross were ready to take off into the sky. On her left wrist was a wristband that was loaned to her by Sid. Bing Crosby blared from the Pip-Boy 3000 on her other arm. She knew that she might not get back from this perilous ride, but she had to fight for the Brotherhood. The Vertibird took off as she positioned her gun, ready to shoot the canyon dwellers once in sight. Samson had already told them in the briefing that it would be an hour before any enemies were in sight, but in the Wastes, you could never be too careful.

* * *

><p>Sid was unrecognizable in his Great Khan "get-up". Since the Legion was friendly with the Khans, it was only natural to choose to go incognito as one in order to get close enough to Caesar to kill him. Beside him, Boone, too, was dressed as a Khan. "I don't know how I can go on with out my beret," said Boone.<p>

Sid replied, "It's only temporary." He had packed a knapsack full of stimpacks and favorite weapons and placed it on the rarest piece of Wasteland transport: a working motorcycle. Boone also placed his tools of trade onto his motorcycles. "Awfully nice of the citizens of Goodsprings to loan us these motorcycles, eh?"

Craig Boone only grunted and revved the bike. Nodding, Sid accelerated and started down the rough road from Goodsprings to Flagstaff.

* * *

><p>At dawn, the Enclave soldiers woke from their slumber for early morning training. They troops ran through the cisterns and trails, waking themselves up for the battle that was to come. Was there even going to be one? Phillip Anderson had often thought about that. How would they attack? A full scale charge into the camp? That seemed like the most likely plan of action for the combined forces of the NCR and BoS. Lt. Sanctum and the general now stood on a ledge looking down at the troops and Legion soldiers. Sanctum broke the silence. "Sir," he said, "I believe I hear some strange sound coming from the north."<p>

"What?" Anderson squinted his eyes and began to hear a sound that was best described as going, "SOI! SOI! SOI!" Shells started hitting the canyon walls behind them. Finally, a vertibird came into eyeshot overhead. Two heavily armored Brotherhood paladins were manning heavy guns. "Ah shit," grunted the general as he reached for a bullhorn. "FALL IN SOLDIERS! ENCLAVE OR LEGION, I DON'T CARE, JUST SHOOT THAT DAMN THING DOWN." The soldiers gave him a smart salute and pulled out rifles.

* * *

><p>Samson's voice came on the Vertibird's PA system. "Aim down, girls! They're shooting up at us!" Cassie grabbed a Fat Man and sent a Mini-Nuke hurtling to the ground. A small mushroom cloud billowed as several cadavers were tossed. Radiation filled the air. Star Paladin Cross reloaded her gun and and started sending a rain of shells onto the enemies below.<p>

"Samson!" shouted Cassie. "I need you to get a little closer."

"Rodger that, Paladin C!" The Vertibird swooped down dramatically and now, the gunners were able to get a good look at their enemies. The Enclave members were better armed than the Legion and there were much more of them. However, her inspection of the enemies didn't distract her from her mission. Her prejudice against the Enclave burned almost as much as it did at Project Purity and Adams Air Force Base.

* * *

><p>Lyons' Pride led the BoS paladins and NCR troopers to the canyon. Every high ranking fighter possessed the newly crafted Yellow Mama. Sarah Lyons, Elder McNamara, and Colonel Moore stood in front of the army with their hands behind their backs. In the background they heard sounds of gunfire and yelling as the troopers below were mowed down by the team of Cross and Cassie. "Gentlemen," barked Moore. "We stand today, Brotherhood and NCR, once enemies, now going into the fray together. That alone is a victory I didn't expect to accomplish. Together we WILL take down the Enclave and Legion remnants. President Kimball will be proud to hear that we took no prisoners. For the NCR!"<p>

"FOR THE NCR!" shouted NCR members.

"Now," said Elder McNamara. "Let us paladins and knights fight to keep the Enclave from taking our precious pre-war technology. Only we will wear the power armor in the Mojave! Plus, I'd like to thank the Capital BoS for coming to support us and get the Mojave Brotherhood up in running. We were in that goddam bunker for far too long."

"Hear hear!"

"Lyons' Pride, you know what to do. Ready people? CHARGE!"

The combined army ran down the hill and unto the battlefield that was too engaged in escaping death from above to realize they had charged.

* * *

><p>A Legion guard stood by Caesar's tent. All morning, the Conqueror acted more paranoid than normal. He requested none of his guards wore a ballistic fist. Shaking his head to get his hair out of his eyes, the guard spotted two Great Khans on motorcycles drive into the camp. They parked the bikes and removed their helmets simultaneously. One had a black pompadour and sunglasses whilst the other had a shaved head and sunglasses. They were clad in leather and tattoos. Definitely Khans. "Hey! You there! Halt!" he shouted.<p>

Mr. Pompadour cocked his lovely head to the side. "Oi?"

"In the name of Caesar, state your business."

"We came bearing news from the new leader of the Khans. He sent us to deliver his message to the Great Conqueror himself."

"This way." The guard lifted the door of the tent and allowed the men to enter.

Caesar looked at the two guests. He had never liked pompadours. And he wasn't sure what to think about the fact that they were hiding behind glasses. Yet they were obviously dopeheads from Red Rock Canyon. Since the Khans were in alliance to the Legion, the tyrant chose to be hospitable. "Ah, gentleman! What is the pleasure?"

"Eh, yah-yuh. Uh, the new lee-dur of the Khans done told us'n to come down and tell you sun-tin," said the one with the pompadour. His accent sounded like the kinds of inbreds that lived in Point Lookout. He'd read about those kinds in books back when he was a lad.

"Well, what the devil is it?"

The pompadoured character ripped of the glasses, revealing stony blue eyes and said, "That the Courier's coming to give ya your just desserts!"

Caesar opened his mouth to scream, but Boone shoved his precious beret in Caesar's mouth to stifle him. Meanwhile, Sid pulled out his ballistic fist from the knapsack. Caesar's muffled screams crescendoed at the sight of the dreaded weapon. "Now," said Sid with a cocky grin. "Now, it's night night for the sweet prince."

Caesar was killed in three punches to the temple.

* * *

><p>The plane flew over the heads of fighters, NCR, Enclave, BoS, and Legion. It was about time to fly back to Nellis to restock on shells. As the Vertibird ascended, Lt. Sanctum aimed a Yellow Mama into the sky and fired. An electric ray hit Cross promptly in the chest, draining her of her life force. With intense feelings of rage, the Lone Wanderer jumped thirty feet from the plane unto the Hellfire trooper below.<p>

**AN: Well, only one chapter left. I am sorry I haven't updated lately. I've been busy with school and music. The finale will be released sometime this week.**


	15. Fin

**A/N: Here it is, the delayed ending to _Where Have You Been All My Life?_ ****It's been a pleasure writing for you and reading your responses. I'm thinking of making a sequel, but I'm not sure if you guys would want one, so let me know!**

* * *

><p>Five months later<p>

The D.C. wastelands were as dry and grim-looking as Cassie had left it so many months ago. Doc Mitchell had spent most of that time rehabilitating her. After all, she had acquired third-degree burns all over her legs and waist from contact with the Hellfire trooper's flamethrower, plus broken bones upon landing on the ground from such a large leap. The mental trauma was staggering as well; she spent three weeks in a sort of comatose without uttering a word, not to even to Sid. When her skin had grown less ghoul-like, the vertibird from D.C. came back to deliver her back to her home in Megaton. While the paladins and knights from the Mojave Brotherhood saw her off, Sid had gone with Boone and the NCR to wipe out the Enclave remnants in Texas.

"Why didn't Sid say goodbye?" she asked Sentinel Lyons, who had stayed with her during her hospitalization in Goodsprings.

"While you were in your…er…stupor, he came to visit often, but when you didn't respond to him, he got angry and gave up. I told him if he left you now, you'd never forgive him. He said to tell you goodbye."

"So were going home now?"

"Yes."

"When will Sid get back?"

"He said he would not rest until all of the Enclave were dead."

"Why such hatred from him?"

Lyons glanced over while rubbing dust from her armor. "Out of his undying love for you. He lost it while you were messed up. Everything in the New Vegas area bears the name 'Cassandra' now. Cassandra Avenue, the Lucky 28 is even called the Cassandra Suites. He left not to get away from you. He left to avenge you."

As soon as she had rested enough to lose her jet lag, Cassie gathered her things from the arsenal in the house to go out to find some activity to lessen the dull aching in her soul. Fawkes noted her disgruntled nature, but said nothing. Dogmeat, being a canine, probably had a better sense of what was happening, but could do nothing. No matter how many mutants, ghouls, or raiders slain, Cassie felt no relief.

Like so many wastelanders, she fell into a state of dependency on jet and beer.

* * *

><p>A year after her return to Megaton, a handsome stranger came into town. He was like nothing the wastelanders had ever seen: tall, muscular, and tan with slick black hair and blue eyes. He was flanked by a robotic dog who chased after those in Megaton who wore hats. He asked where he could find Cassie, and they answered. Yet they had no idea why he would spend his time on a worn-out junkie who had retired months ago from the vigilante business.<p>

Sid Boston played with his shirt collar as he knocked on the door to Cassie's house. He hoped she was there; she had to be there. If she didn't answer, he would go back to Moriarty's and spend another night in the room he rented, and he would attempt to see her the next day. Yet, he was certain she'd answer.

"Damit," he muttered. "Open up if you like me."

The door creaked open, and Sid felt a rush of joy which was quickly extinguished when he saw a Mr. Handy in the doorway instead of the Lone Wanderer.

"May I be of service? My name is Wadsworth," said the robot.

"Yes, is Cassandra home?"

"Yes, but the mistress is alarmingly ill now and I don't-"

"Step aside, tin man!" he pushed the bot out of his way and entered the house. The house had been kept clean by Wadsworth, or at the least the bottom floor had. Cassie's room was a wreck: bottles of alcohol and hypodermic needles were strewn across the floor, and Cassie sat in the corner.

"You," she said.

"Yes, I'm back…and oh my God, Cass, have you been doing drugs?"

Cassie looked sickly, part of her face was still scarred from the fire and sunken in. She had lost what couldn't be less than twenty pounds since Sid had seen her last. Her mohawk was no longer the shiny blonde, but rather gray.

"So what? It was the only thing that made me forget you."

"I left to fight the men who tried to kill you! We won the war, you know. You're a war hero. The Mojave still talks of you and your sacrifice. If they saw you now…"

"Shut up! Can't you see what you've done to me? I'm a worthless wreck!"

He sat down in the corner and held her close to his chest. "No," he said. "You're the greatest human who has ever lived. You need to get better. I'll make you better. But you have to trust me. Do you?"

She panted. "Yes. But are you going to leave me?"

"I'm back to stay, now let's go find the doctor. Can you get up?"

"I think."

The Megatonians watched as Sid exited Cassie's home, with her draped over her shoulder. He was shouting, "Doctor, doctor, we need a doctor!" Cassie was sick, but when the townsmen looked at Sid, they were convinced she'd make it. Behind every good paladin is a good weapon. Behind every good wanderer is a good courier.


End file.
